Paris Saint-Germain forward Lionel Messi took home The Best FIFA Men’s Player Award 2022 on Monday. Messi was the leading vote-getter among the national team captains, national team managers, fans, and the media.
A multitude of national team managers handed out a first-place vote to Messi for the honor. However, not every single such coach gave the Argentine forward a top-three vote for the award.
For one, Spain national team manager Luis de la Fuente did not hand out a top-three vote (via FIFA) to Messi for this prestigious honor. The first-year Spain manager instead placed Manchester City forward Julian Alvarez, Borussia Dortmund midfielder Julian Bellingham, and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric in his top three respectively for the annual award.
Luis De La Fuente ha votado a 1° Julián Álvarez, 2° Bellingham y 3° Modric para el The Best 💀 pic.twitter.com/2oMeRHk9kj
— 🅿 (@finallyxpablo) February 27, 2023
Messi is just coming off of a keen showing in PSG’s Ligue 1 away win against Olympique de Marseille, where he recorded three goal contributions.